Catching Up
by LysCat
Summary: One shot featuring Elejah. Elena's eyes never strayed from Elijah's intense scrutiny. His eyes that were normally devoid from emotion, held just a hint of gentleness and fierce determination. It was akin the side of him that he once shared with her.


Title: Catching Up  
Author: Alysia  
Category: Elejah, with mentions of others  
Summary: Set during 3x22. After Elijah's request, Elena kicks out the others so that she can speak to Elijah alone.  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters familiar to the show.  
Author's Note: Another one shot, which in no way ties in to the story that I previously posted. With this one, I branched out and took a few liberties concerning the past. Also, about Meredith Fells and her interest in vampire blood, I wasn't sure if that was made known to everyone, so for the sake of my story, it wasn't.

Matt Donavon looked at the strange man in the kitchen, the expression on his face, giving nothing away. Inwardly, his skin was crawling just being in the presence of the Original vampire. Despite all that had down the last year, he'd heard the entire tale from Caroline and Elena. He didn't trust Elijah as far as he could throw him, which wouldn't be far…if at all. In fact, no one really felt as though they could trust him, except Elena.

Beside the Gilbert's island counter top, the blonde's eyes swept over Elena's form. Her head was turned, looking away from the Original, a thoughtful expression adorning the features of her face. Once upon a time, Matt would have known what she was thinking in a heartbeat. Before they began dating, they were friends, good ones. He'd always managed to have an idea of what she was feeling or thinking. It had been a long time since they shared the same sense of familiarity, but Matt felt as though he would always be able to distinguish her thoughts and emotional state.

For example, he knew that after years of seemingly chipping away at her walls, Damon Salvatore had finally managed to capture Elena's heart, no matter how much she tried to fight against it. Matt knew that even though her relationship with Stefan was all but done, they still shared a deep connection and loved one another. Another thing that Matt knew was that Elena held some sort of affection for Elijah. This was where his understanding of her became spotty. He had seen the way she looked at Elijah. She beheld him the same way she once regarded him and even the Salvatore brothers.

As soon as Elijah spoke of his plan to take Klaus away, Elena seemed almost content to listen to his story. She remained mostly impassive, but Matt knew that she was only considering the man's promise, nothing further. Next to her, Stefan seemed to be buying into the Original vampire's story, something that confused Matt. The remaining male human in the room knew that no one (except for Elena) cared much for any of the Mikaelson siblings. Why his once romantic rival was listening to the proposition, left him both a little angry and stupefied.

"Why should she trust you?" Matt demanded, speaking up for the first time since the vampire was invited into the Gilbert's residence. "You've done nothing but screw her over," he added, when no one, even the Salvatore on speaker phone, spoke up. His question seemed to wake both Stefan and Elena from whatever stupor they found themselves in. It was something that Elena wouldn't even consider asking aloud. She was too good a person to do that, throw the past back in someone's face…fortunately, he had no problem doing so.

Elijah minutely nodded, staring into the teenaged male's eyes. He refused to hide behind excuses, and he certainly didn't need to discuss any private matters with a high school student and a young vampire he hardly tolerated. "And for that, I am deeply ashamed," the attractive brunette admitted. His words were completely truthful. The centuries old vampire was sure that whatever semi-partnership he once shared with Elena, was ruined beyond repair. It was a grievance that he carried with him since his last departure from Mystic Falls. Moving away from his internal thoughts, he returned to the conversation. "But know this, she could have been dead the instant I walked through that door."

Two seats away, Elena expelled a breath at the words. While she acknowledged the truth to them, she also mourned them because it had been such a long time since he treated her with that same indifference. It felt like she was back to being the doppelganger instead of Elena. Then again, she supposed it was deserved.

Elijah ignored the brief flash of discontent that crossed the doppelganger's face. He knew that his words were callous, but he needed to keep a level head. He couldn't afford to let emotions get in the way. The last time he let his guard down, Elena had let him down. What was it that he found so enticing about the Petrova women? How was it that they managed to make him feel like an adolescent boy with no reservations? "So, Elena…I leave it to you to make the decision. Whether to trust me or not…" He trailed off, his gaze never wavering from her chocolate colored eyes.

Elena's eyes never strayed from Elijah's intense scrutiny. His eyes that were normally devoid from emotion, held just a hint of gentleness and fierce determination. It was akin the side of him that he once shared with her. She felt her resolve breaking, and she was about ready to concede to his request…until Damon's voice through the phone broke her from the haze she'd settled into.

"Not! Helllooo?!" The word was drawn out. "Did that concussion give you brain damage? His lunatic siblings will kill you the first chance they get." Damon shook his head in wonderment. What was it about Elijah? Elena was always willing to jump through hoops for him. If Elijah had compelled her, Damon would be able to understand the skewed loyalty she had for him, but he wasn't.

Elijah's expression turned grave at the mention of his siblings. He was no longer going to give excuses for them either. He knew that his family had done little to recommend their trust, but he needed to try. "Rebekah and Kol will honor the terms if you return Klaus' body to us." He looked away from the media device on the table and captured Elena's attention. "Elena will come to no harm."

The power of his stare made her uncomfortable, and Elena found herself looking away from the intensity of it. No matter what she said, agreed to, someone would be upset by her actions. She didn't want to anger and disappoint her friends by agreeing to Elijah's terms, but she also didn't want to anger the Original family. Kol appeared to share many of the same traits that Klaus possessed, and Rebekah certainly held little regard for her. Elena was sure that if she denied Elijah, her life would be far from peaceful.

"This is all just…" Elena trailed off. "I need some peace and quiet." The past day had just exhausted her, and she just couldn't catch a break. Between being kidnapped and almost killed, and then visiting the hospital, and then being suffocated by friends…

"Perhaps you should leave," Stefan suggested to Elijah, already moving into a standing position to help Elena out of her chair.

Elena only shook her head. "No, Stefan. Actually, I think that Elijah and I have…a little catching up to do," she said, repeating his words the night that he saved her from Rebekah.

Immediately protestations came from her former boyfriends or lovers, but she was resolute in her decision. After Elena promised that she wouldn't do anything strenuous to upset her still healing body, Stefan and Matt grudgingly left; both promising to be back a few hours later.

As soon as the door shut behind them, the brunette couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. While she understood that her friends just wanted to take care of her and make sure that she was okay, but it was exhausting being around everyone. There were still things that she needed to process, but she knew that she wouldn't be able to do that with other constantly surrounding her.

Elijah took a moment to take in Elena's appearance. There was always an air of elegance that Elena seemed to possess, no matter what she did. And though he'd never admit it to anyone, he always found her beautiful, but for the first time since he appeared at her door, he really allowed himself to look at her. She seemed haggard and exasperated. Her body was still healing, but something just seemed off. He couldn't determine what it was, but there seemed to be a foreign something about it. He wasn't exactly sure what happened, but based on Rebekah's information, Klaus had kidnapped Elena and then he'd been staked.

"Would you care to find a more comfortable seating arrangement? Perhaps the couch?" He has a feeling that their conversation would be a long one.

"I've been confined to the couch long enough," she replied. "Would you mind if we went upstairs to talk?" The bed was calling her name.

"If that is what you prefer," he agreed.

The journey to her room was a cautious one. Elena was slow, making sure not to make any sudden movements that may upset her body. Elijah took up the rear, making sure to be ready should something befall the human in front of him. Elena claimed a seat on her bed, trying to get comfortable as she watched Elijah do a once over about her room.

"What happened, Elena?" Elijah asked, wondering exactly what Klaus had done to her.

"As if you don't already know," she bit back. Momentarily, she felt a slight feeling of apology, but she quickly pushed it down. Her nerves were shot, and after the way that Elijah so carelessly reminded everyone just how little regard he had for her, she wasn't going to play nice.

In the past year, they'd played a game of push and pull. They depended on one another, used one another, betrayed each other and there didn't seem to be an ending in sight to the circle.

"I would like to hear your side of the story."

Elena shrugged. "There's not much to say. Klaus kidnapped me…and then Damon, Bonnie and Stefan rescued me," she replied deceptively indifferent. She was proud of herself for keeping her emotions in check. Everyone wanted to know how she was feeling, but she didn't even know how she felt. Klaus always seemed to make her feel insecure and made her second guess everything.

He sensed that Elena didn't care to discuss the situation, and he wasn't about to push her on it. He had spent years with Klaus, years running from and plotting against him. Whatever Klaus had said and done was enough to pick at her thoughts. "And the reason for Stefan Salvatore's extra protective behavior towards you?" He didn't bother clarifying his words. The Salvatore brothers were always protecting and defending her, but he'd never seen the young vampire treat Elena as though she was a breakable piece of china.

"I was tied to a chair and when everyone rushed in, I was knocked over. I hit my head on the ground. It hurt, but I was fine…at first. Later, I passed out and was taken to the hospital. Doctor Fells insisted that it was just a concussion, but everyone is being extra careful with me."

Elijah's eyes narrowed onto her appearance and with his vampiric speed, he was next to her, settling over her, before Elena had a chance to process the fact that he'd moved in her direction.

In shock, Elena moved away from him. The move was reminiscent to the first time she and Elijah met. She still remembered how scared she was the moment he stepped into the room. Even then, she realized how beautiful he was, and despite how frightened she'd been at the time, when he leaned close to smell her, she couldn't deny the slightest bit of lust and attraction that bit at her. Watching him slap Trevor's head from his body definitely culled the lust that she felt, but he'd always remained striking in her eyes.

"Elijah, what are you doing?"

"I'm scenting you," he replied, never lifting his head from her neck. He'd always found Elena's scent enticing. There was a light, floral scent, one that he had come to expect when he was in such close proximity to her. Thinking back on the evening, he couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed it sooner. While there was still a slight flowery aroma about her, it was tainted. She smelt sterile, which even though she'd been at the hospital, shouldn't have been so strong. Another scent hit him, and he felt his body stiffen.

"You're allowing Damon to feed you his blood?" He remembered the last time Damon had done so. It had been before the sacrifice was to take place. Elena had been so upset by his actions. Barely a year later, and she seemed to be okay with it? It didn't make sense. He chose to focus on that point, rather than concentrate on the anger he felt over her willingly accepting Damon Salvatore's blood. Why he felt angry and this foreign heaviness in his heart, he didn't understand, nor was he willing to dissect at the moment.

Elena frowned, turning her head to look at him. Their faces were close, their noses were only inches away from touching. "Of course not," she denied. The last time Damon had done it, it had taken months for her to be able to fully trust him once again.

"Elena, you reek of him," his voice was emotionless, but insistent all the same.

A frown pulled at her lips. The expression on Elijah's face bordered on anger. "I haven't," she insisted, unsure of the reason behind his irritation.

Elijah stared into her eyes, imploring her to tell him the truth. He wasn't sure why he was concerned about it, but he didn't like it. "What if he fed you and then compelled you not to remember it?" She had been taken to the hospital so her injury was much more serious than a scratch. Maybe the elder Salvatore brother acted impulsively and upon realizing his mistake, compelled her to forget about it?

The human frowned as she considered his words. Once upon a time she would have figured the same thing, but after last time…Damon wouldn't do that to her again. She was sure of that.

"Elijah, I don't know why I smell like this…I…unless…" she trailed off. Her interest was piqued, but she was too tired to try and find any answers. She'd ask Damon when they had a moment alone. "I'm glad that you're back. I wanted to talk about what happened before."

Elijah backed away and turned his attention back on perusing her room. His letter, the one he'd left the night that he trapped her underground with Rebekah, was sitting on her nightstand. It seemed as though it had been opened and read many times based on the condition of the paper. He picked it up.

If Elena was feeling just a little bit better, she was sure she'd be blushing over him looking at it with such a keen eye. Since she discovered the item, she'd read it and re-read it many times over.

"I meant what I wrote," Elijah told her. "I…after discovering what my mother and Finn had planned for us, I was thrown for a loop. I knew Rebekah was the lesser of three evils. Klaus has made no secret of his plans for you." Aside from his siblings, and even that was sketchy, the hybrid's concern was for himself and what affected him. "And Kol shares similar views to him."

Elena shrugged her shoulders. "Rebekah isn't a bad person, she's just…damaged."

The vampire smirked. "I wouldn't let her hear that description," he warned. Although, he agreed with her, he wouldn't dare say it to his sister. Rebekah wasn't a bad person, she was just trying to survive with what she'd been dealt. She just had extremely bad luck in trusting the wrong person.

"You could have stayed with me," Elena breathed out. Since his departure, she'd often wondered why he didn't stay with her and let Rebekah chase their mother.

He turned back to look at the human in the room. "I really don't think that I could have," the words tumbled out before realized it. "When I planned to bring you out there, I thought that it was deserved…that you betrayed me. You were so sincere and apologetic, I nearly backed out of the plan all together." It was the reason why he had so quickly broken the ground and dropped her into it.

"I wasn't angry with you for it…" Elena trailed off. When she noticed the pointed look he'd given her, she smiled. "Okay, I wasn't angry for very long. I put you in a difficult place, and you were trying to protect your family. From the moment we met, I knew that was your main concern." They'd both done things for the sake of saving their families, there was no shame in that.

"I still shouldn't have put you in the middle like that," he denied. "I used your trust in me and twisted it to get my way."

"You didn't put me in the middle, Esther did. And I…I should have asked what she was doing before I so stupidly allowed her to take my blood."

Elijah shook his head. Perhaps she should have, but he had learned much of his countenance from his mother. She possessed the ability to turn questions around in a conversation. She could learn answers before answering any questions herself. "I've since learned that my mother was somewhat selective about her words to you…that you had no idea what she had planned until after you had given her your blood."

"I was so eager to get rid of one evil in my life, I made a deal with another one," she breathed. "I never wanted anything to happen to you, Elijah."

"I don't want anything to happen to you either. I know that since I've entered your life, and since my family was soon to follow, your world has been turned upside down." Elena was a good person, and she deserved to live her life like the students she went to school with. "You should be able to get back into the swing of things. Maybe you'll find someone to settle down with and you can have a family," he made sure to keep his expression even. "If that's the case, then I was completely serious. I will never wake him up during their lives."

"While I appreciate it, I don't know if I'll be having children." Stefan had managed to make her feel things that Matt never had. Damon took those feelings one step further. And while she knew that she didn't know much about Elijah, the moments that they had shared superseded the things that Damon made her feel. "I think the possibility of a normal romance with a human lover has been ruined." She couldn't imagine just settling for someone, not when she knew that there was something better out there.

"How are you handling everything?" He knew that Elena was strong, but he also knew a person could handle only so much before breaking.

"We-"

"Elena, I asked how you were handling everything, not how everyone else was," he reminded her gently.

"Alaric was a really good man," Elena answered, not that Elijah would know. Alaric was a vampire hunter, and other than Stefan, he had never liked the supernatural race. Even his friendship with Damon was iffy. "He…Isobel really screwed him up. And then he and Jenna…" she trailed off, remembering the good memories. "Jeremy and I were ready for him to be 'cool uncle Alaric,' and then Jenna…"

Elijah didn't say anything, he knew that there was nothing he could say to offer her comfort. Unfortunately, this was something that Elena was going to have to deal with alone. She may have her friends to help her along the way, but essentially, it was Elena that would have to find peace.

"He'd been a mess after Isobel and he started to do better, after Jenna's death, he was ready to give up, to let it all go. He stayed for us, me and Jeremy. He wasn't perfect, but he protected us…and it worked for us." Tears were openly flowing down her cheeks. A hand settled on her lap, she covered it with her own, squeezing in silent appreciation. "He's all we had left. I don't know what we're going to do without him. And, I've been trying to…keep it together. I'm the older sibling, I'm supposed to stay strong for Jeremy…but all I want to do is just lie down and cry myself to sleep every second of the day."

Elijah removed his hand from her lap and instead cupped her face in his hands, using the pads of his thumbs to wipe away her tears. "You're the strongest woman I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. I could tell you that you'll get through this, and that everything happens for a reason…but it's all a cliché, don't you agree?" Everyone grieved in their own time. "If you'd like, I can stay…help you."

Elena tried to smile at him, but it turned into a grimace. "You've already done so much for me."

Elijah pulled his hands away from her, but he remained close to her body. Considering what he'd done to her in the past, he hadn't done enough. He chose to keep the observation to himself. He learned early on just how stubborn Elena was. Despite whatever help she may have needed, she wouldn't accept it.

"Too many people have already risked so much to help me, I can't let you do that too. Besides, you'll have Klaus…and something tells me that your hands with be full with your brothers and sister."

"You're agreeing to my terms?"

He'd waited nine hundred years to be reunited with his family. Unfortunately, he wouldn't have his mother or Finn with him, but he still had the others. Elena couldn't deny him that, it had been the one thing he'd worked towards for so long. The heartfelt smile that graced his lips left her winded.

"You know that your friends won't be happy…" he warned. Damon Salvatore would pitch a fit.

"They make decisions for me all the time," she argued back. "I think it's time that I made some for myself."

Elijah's eyes stung with unshed tears. The woman before him had just given him everything that he'd ever wanted. He would remain in her debt until his dying day, of that he was sure. There was so much that he wanted to say to her, but when he noticed the heavy look that settled on her eyes, he held himself back from doing so. "Perhaps you should try to rest…"

Elena barely nodded her head in acknowledgment. "You're going to be gone when I wake up."

"Yes, I will," he confirmed. "But I promise I will be back to check on you. You will never have to worry about things. I will take care of you, Elena…even from a distance."

His words soothed her racing thoughts. She wasn't sure how he intended to keep his word, but Elijah was a man of honor. If he pledged something, he meant it. "I hope you find the peace with your family that you always wanted."

Elijah stood up, sensing that Elena was losing a battle against sleep. "Sleep now, Elena." He let his gaze linger on her for a moment, committing this to his memory. "Thank you, dear one," he whispered against her forehead, setting a kiss upon it. "You will see me again, I promise." Turning around, he headed out the window to meet up with Kol and Rebekah.


End file.
